These boots were made for walkin’ … Battalion invites civilians to participate in ‘road march’

***image1***Soldiers from the 415th Base Support Battalion Headquarters, Headquarters Detachment, invite their civilian coworkers for a five-mile road march 7 a.m. Thursday at the Rhine Ordnance Barracks Fitness Center.
Building team spirit and preparing for deployment, a road march is a normal part of being a Soldier. Sometimes referred to as a tactical road march, it’s a trek complete with full battle rattle (military gear), helmets, rucksacks and weapons. Of course, civilians who accept the detachment’s invitation can wear appropriate fitness attire.
“I’m extending the invitation to our civilians because I want them to be part of every activity and event that the company does,” said Capt. Carol Kotlowski, the HHD commander. “I want them to feel and be a part of the team and enhance cohesion between military and the civilian work force.”
Finnie Richardson, a manager for the Soldier Readiness Program at the Central Processing Facility on Kleber Kaserne, accepted the invitation for the detachment’s road three-mile march last April at ROB.
“It’s just good to get out and see who’s in the company and see who you work with,” said Mr. Richardson, who started working for the battalion in last February. “I don’t know everybody, so I think it’s nice to get out and do this with the Soldiers.”
Although not required, civilians are encouraged to participate in the Common Task Training conducted throughout the march.
These are skill-level tasks that the Soldiers have to remain proficient on throughout the duration of their career, said Captain Kotlowski. The training held during the April march included dealing with Unexploded Ordnance, Land Mines and Land Navigation.
Master Sgt. David Heiny, NCO in charge, Directorate of Public Works, taught the first class on Unexploded Ordnance. He said that conducting these training tasks during the road march and as an outdoor classroom benefits Soldiers.
“It’s good to train during a road march because the Soldiers are in uniform and full battle gear,” he said. “Classrooms are not very good for this type of training because you need to be out there and see how things are and have hands-on experience.”
Besides Thursday’s march, the detachment also has a ten-mile road march scheduled at 7 a.m. June 2 at the ROB Fitness Center.